When did Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has been praised by international media for its democratic reforms during its first few years in power, start to turn into what it is today — a ruthless political machine that cracks down on free speech with increasingly potent tools, insisting on its "unconstitutional" course as was seen in the Jan. 28 debate at the parliament?
It can easily be argued that the AKP's reform drive had already stopped in 2005, before its truly authoritarian tendencies materialized in 2007 with a more draconian approach toward media following its second electoral victory.
